NHL gamecenter streaming issues

I'm also having buffering issues. Netflix, etc all work flawlessly, so I'm assuming that it's the NHL who is responsible. It's really frustrating because I purchased my Gamecenter subscription to watch with the ATV2.

Count me in as a DISAPPOINTED customer at the moment. Bought the Apple TV2 primariy for NHL streaming and so far it stinks. Games that stream just fine to the two desktops in the house DO NOT stream well to ATV2 at all. Never get more than about 90seconds at a time without a stoppage for buffering. Audio then begins before video, and then video plays back at fast forward speed to catch up to audio, then 60-90 seconds later it freezes for buffering and the whole thing starts again. Essentially unwatchable....arghhh! Some help please Apple or NHL!!

I am so mad at NHL! I'm experiencing the same issues. 10 seconds of game, 30 seconds of buffering. Whenever I complain to NHL, they just bounce it back to me, my equipment, my ISP, AppleTV, etc. etc. If I wait on hold for 45 minutes and actually get to speak with a human being, they always take great pause when I say I'm using an AppleTV, like they don't know what to do next. If you've ever emailed them, their form doesn't even have a selection of AppleTV. If we can't get any satisfaction outta NHL, perhaps Apple could bring some pressure upon them. I don't want to cancel, I just want to watch hockey!! I KNOW it's not me, my equipment, AppleTV etc. I stream stuff ALL THE TIME without a hitch.

I've been having the same issue on both ATV2 and PS3. Believe it or not I have found one limited workaround. If they game you are trying to watch has a canadian team, use the canadian feed. Watch WASH vs. TOR and the TOR feed is working fine while washington feed is unwatchable. Ditto for WPG CAR game. Let me know if this holds true for anyone else.

Ditto. Frustrated.

cheeseyblasters wrote:

I've been having the same issue on both ATV2 and PS3. Believe it or not I have found one limited workaround. If they game you are trying to watch has a canadian team, use the canadian feed. Watch WASH vs. TOR and the TOR feed is working fine while washington feed is unwatchable. Ditto for WPG CAR game. Let me know if this holds true for anyone else.

Haven't had this hold true for me. I usually watch games after they are over--not live. Some will stream this way, others will not--most often the team I really WANT to watch will not! I was watching one game on the computer the other night and decided to try the ATV2 again after the first period and found it WAS finally available. The weird thing was that the steam was slightly different than the stream I was watching o the computer. The computer stream included all of the commercial breaks and period intermissions, the ATV2 stream did not--it just went immediately to the next action or next period. Are they somehow formatting a special feed for ATV2? Does this take time and is that why some of the games are not available for awhile after the live game is over? I'm grasping at straws here to understand how I can best use this device which is so far quite frustrating and mysterious.....

Add me to the list. Not only am I experience connectivity/buffering issues, but everything (including audio) is terrible quality. I see faint spells of HD, which promptly goes back to standard definition with crappy sound. I expected MLB.tv quality, which works great on ATV. I'm running Comcast broadband, just tested download speed @ 29Mbps. So it ain't on my end.

Try again, guys.

Tom

Here is the response I received from NHL Gamecenter support, not veyr helpful at all!!!!!

"

Your request about Video Quality has been received at 12/13/2011 12:44 PM

Our apologies, we are aware of playback issues affecting some Apple TV users but we have not been able to recreate the same issue in our support center. We have a team from our operations group investigating the cause of these issues. Meanwhile, we will place you on the follow up list in case there is any information that operations need from your configuration or if there is any troubleshooting steps that they recommend.

NHL Web Support "

I too am incredibly disappointed in the ATV implementation of GameCenter. I normally get home from work around midnight eastern and use the service to time-shift games. I'm normally trying to watch as soon as the game shows up. The constant buffering make the games unwatchable. I've complained to the service provider (I hesitate to call them The NHL since I'm sure it's Neulion or somebody) and have yet to get a satisfactory explanation of the problem. The support people seem to have very little understanding of how ATV works. They tell me to make sure my app is up to date. Really?

I end up watching everything on my 11 inch Macbook Air. Not the same as a 52 inch TV.

I don't know what more to do other than keep sending complaints every game.

Apple needs to reconsider this partnership if this is the best we can expect.

I've been attempting to watch the archive of the Blackhawks vs Wild (12/14) for the past 20 hours. However, each time I click play, I get 3 seconds of video, followed by a black screen with the message "an error occurred loading this content". I've tried to fast-forward further into the game, but the error still persists. Really? I'm surprised Apple continues to allow the NHL to offer such poor service through their device. :(

By the way, if anyone else can confirm that they, too, receive the error message when watching this game, I'd love to hear it. Thanks.

Thanks for the heads up. I updated my ATV2 and now I'm watching the game! I also found out that this one should actually be blacked out for 48 hours (which it is on NHL.com) because it was nationally televised. I guess I'll consider early access to the game as a consolation prize for all of the live streaming headaches I've experienced so far this season.

I don't think the update did anything, I just updated and am wathcinng the Winnipeg-Washington game and am still getting buffering every couple of minutes.

I'm not sure that the update solved the buffering issues, but it did allow me to watch the archive of Wednesday's game.